Claimed, gathered and sent

This is the sermon I preached last Sunday, 1/5 at St. Timothy Lutheran Church . The gospel text was Matthew 2:1-12.  What in the world is Epiphany and why do we celebrate it? Epiphany means "showing forth." It names the day that the church tells Matthew's story of the magi from foreign lands who follow the light of the star and "see" Jesus as Christ. This is important because this acknowledges that the greatest gift given by the God who comes down to be with His people, is to be shared by Jew and Gentile alike. The irony here is the wise men who were not Jewish scholars were the first to recognize the sign of the star in the sky and the importance of its meaning. It's commonly believed that the star would have also been seen in Jerusalem and Judea but somehow the Jewish scholars were asleep in the temple. Even if they saw it, they either ignored it or didn't look in the Jewish scriptures to find out what it meant. More importantly, if they did unders...

This Sunday we will be celebrating Epiphany. The text below is the one I'm preaching from. What are your thoughts about this text? Gospel: Matthew 2:1-12 1In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” 3When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:  6‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,   are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;  for from you shall come a ruler   who is to shepherd my people Israel.’ ”   7Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8Then he sent t...

This past Sunday, 1/3, we observed Epiphany. I preached this sermon at St. Timothy Lutheran Church and St. Mark Lutheran Church. The scripture text is Matthew 2:1-12   What in the world is Epiphany and why do we celebrate it? Epiphany means "showing forth." It names the day that the church tells Matthew's story of the magi from foreign lands who follow the light of the star and "see" Jesus as Christ. This is important because this acknowledges that the greatest gift given by the God who comes down to be with His people, is to be shared by Jew and Gentile alike. The irony here is the wise men who were not Jewish scholars were the first to recognize the sign of the star in the sky and the importance of its meaning. It's commonly believed that the star would have also been seen in Jerusalem and Judea but somehow the Jewish scholars were asleep in the temple. Even if they saw it, they either ignored it or didn't look in the Jewish scriptures to find ...

Main Entry: epiph·a·ny Pronunciation: \i- ˈ pi-fə-nē\ Function: noun Inflected Form(s): plural epiph·a·nies Etymology: Middle English epiphanie, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin epiphania, epiphaneia epiphainein to manifest, from epi- + phainein to show — more at fancy from Late Greek, plural, probably alteration of Greek appearance, manifestation, from Date: 14th century 1 capitalized : January 6 observed as a church festival in commemoration of the coming of the Magi as the first manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles or in the Eastern Church in commemoration of the baptism of Christ 2 : an appearance or manifestation especially of a divine being 3 a (1) : a usually sudden manifestation or perception of the essential nature or meaning of something (2) : an intuitive grasp of reality through something (as an event) usually simple and striking (3) : an illuminating discovery, realization, or disclosure b : a revealing scene or moment 1. That...